Isabelle Burgund

Isabelle Burgund

April 23, 1926 – January 28, 2020

Lucinda Marguerite Isabelle (Bigard) Burgund, passed away on January 28, at OSF Heart of Mary in Champaign where she was being treated for pneumonia-like symptoms.

She was 93. 

Isabelle was born on April 23, 1926 in Mattoon to Fern Alma (Gowins) Bigard and Bernard (Ben) Bigard. They lived on a farm at Boos in rural Jasper County. Isabelle graduated from Newton Community High School with the class of 1944. Upon graduation, she worked in a dry cleaning business and the Paramount Theater in Aurora. She married Philip Burgund of Sainte Marie and together they had five children. Later in life, she worked in manufacturing, food service and as a home health care aide. After retiring, she moved to Urbana to be closer to family and has lived at Florida House for more than twenty years.

Isabelle attended Circle of Friends, an adult day care facility in Champaign riding the ADA bus in the mornings. Recently, at Circle of Friends, she participated in an art program where she made six mixed media works over six weeks assisted by her partner, Christopher, an OTA student at Parkland College.

Isabelle brightened the days with song. She loved music, sang and played guitar.

“You are my sunshine,” was one of her favorite tunes. Isabelle was our sunshine.

As a young woman, she enjoyed listening to WLS radio’s National Barn Dance.
She filled notebooks with lyrics of popular songs to learn and sing. Her colloquial expressions and short poems always brought smiles to those of us gathering round.
One goes like this...

            “She said she wasn’t hungry but look at what she ate,

            a dozen raw, a plate of slaw, a chicken and a roast,

            when she asked for pie, I thought I’d die for I had but 50 pence.”

Isabelle was preceded in death by her parents Ben and Fern, her siblings, Cletus, Lawrence and Bessie, a foster sister, Loretta, her husband, Philip, and a daughter, Mary Lou.

She is survived by three daughters and a son, Beverly Armstrong (Bill), Bolingbrook Illinois, Bernard (Joe) Burgund of Lake Isabella, California, Bonnie Burgund (Paul Young) of Champaign and Phyllis (Julie) Burgund of Urbana, nine grandchildren and four great-grandchildren. Grandchildren include: Caelea Armstrong, Courtney Kowalski, Amy Whyte, Amber Nelson, Gabe Burgund, Zac Holmes, Allison Williford-Burgund, Elaina Burgund and Joshua Burgund. Great-grandchildren include: Calvin Holmes, Abby Holmes, Donovan Nelson and Carolina Whyte.

We extend our deepest gratitude to Georgianna Frye, her case worker at Care Horizon, Kathy, Robin and all other staff at Circle of Friends, her Family Service aides, Teresa and Ayanna and Tom, a volunteer driver.

Sunset Funeral Home and Cremation Center in Champaign, Illinois 710 N Neil St. Champaign, Illinois 61820 attended to Isabelle’s final arrangements.
Her remains will be interred at a later time to Mount Calvary Cemetery in Newton.

To send flowers to the family, please visit our floral store.